Method of



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

J. GRESHAM.

METHOD OF APPLYING SAND TO RAILS OF RAILWAYS.

No. 409,578. Patented Aug. 20, 1889.

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(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

J. GRESHAM. METHOD'OF APPLYING SAND T0 RAILS 0F RAILWAYS. No. 409,578.

Patented Aug. 20, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT Unmet).

JAMES GRESHAM, OF STRETFORD, NEAR MANCHESTER, COUNTY OF LAN- CASTER, ENGLAND.

METHOD OF APPLYING SAND TO RAI LS OF RAILWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 409,578, dated August 20, 1889.

Application filed March 80. 1888. Serial No. 269,020. (No model.) Patented in England April 26, 1887, No. 6,072 in France July 25, 1887, No. 184,974; in Germany July 25, 1887, No. 42,954; in Belgium November 2, 1887, No. 79,891; in Italy November '7, 1887, XLIV, 442 in Canada February 7, 1888, No. 28,496; in Austria-Hungary March 8, 1888, and in India March 13, 1889, No. 39.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JAMES GRESHAM, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Stretford, near Manchester, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements iiia Method of Applying Sand to the Rails of Railways to Prevent the Slipping of the Driving-VVheels of Locomotives, (for which I have obtained Letters Patent in Great Britain, No. 6,072, dated April 26, 1887; in France, No. 184,974, dated July 25, 1887; in Germany, No. 42,054, dated July 25, 1887; in Belgium, No. 79,391, dated November 2, 1887; in Italy, No. 442, Vol. 44, dated November 7, 1887; in Canada, No. 28,496, dated February 7, 1888; in Austria- Hungary, (not yet numbered,) dated March 8, 1888, and in India, No. 39, date of permission to file a specification March 13, 1889;) and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The invention relatesto a novel mode of distributing sand to the driving-wheels of a locomotive, or between the tread of saidwheels and the rails upon which they run, to give increased adhesion when required and prevent the wheels from slipping on the rails.

To these ends the invention consists in the mode of taking up the sand from the sandbox and projecting the same to the point at which it is to be delivered by means of a current of air and steam, substantially as hereinafter fully described, and set forth in the claims.

Any suitable means may be employed in carrying out my invention, and in my Letters Patent of the United States, dated April 29, 1888, No. 381,837, I have described and claimed certain improved devices for carrying out the method forming the subject=matter of this invention, to which devices I will refer hereinafter.

In the distribution of sand to the rails, or between the rails and the tread of the locomotive-drivers, the sand has heretofore been allowed to fall by gravity from a sand-box to its point of destination, being guided thereto by suit-able pipes or tubes or hose. In some cases it has also been proposed to propel the sand to its destination by the aid of a jet of steam. In either of these cases it has been found very difficult to regulate the amount of sand to be delivered to the rails, while, on the other hand, the sanding devices were liable to become choked, especially where the sand is carried in a more or less horizontal plane to its point of destination; i These difficulties are avoided by my novel mode of distribution, inasmuch as the volume of sand delivered to the rail is governed by the force of the air-current by which it is taken up and carried to the point from which it is projected, and inasmuch as the force of said current can be regulated at will, so as to take up more or less sand from the surface of a non-moving body, over and in contact with which surface the induced air-currents are caused to pass and lick or take up the sand by the action of passing over it. On the other hand, the sand being driven or carried by a current of air through the ducts leading from the sandbox to the point from which the sand is projected to its destination, the said ducts are not liable to become choked up by the sand even when said ducts have but a very slight inclination.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 is an outline of a locomotive, showing the 1111- proved sand-distributing apparatus applied to the forward side of the front drivingwheels. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the sand-distributing apparatus. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse section of the steamcock for admitting steam to the ejector of the sanddistributing apparatus. Fig. 4 is a section taken on line a: 00 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is an elevation of the plug of the steam-cock, and Fig. 6 is an end view of the washer A.

lhe sand employed is, by preference, dry, or nearly so, and is contained in a receptacle 0, Fig. 2, which is either so located under the locomotive as to prevent access of rain or other moisture to the sand therein, or saidreceptacle, when exposed to atmospheric influences, is closed by a suitable lid or cover. The receptacle c is connected with the sand-trap D proper by means of a duct or pipe (1, of sufficient inclination to allow the sand to fl ow freely to the trap.

In Fig. 2 I have shown the pipe (1 as forming an integral part with the trap D and as provided with a flange or collar (Z, from which the sand box or receptacle 0 is supported, and I have shown said pipe in an approximatelyvertical position. The lower end of the pipe is enlarged to form a receptacle or trap, into which the sand flows from pipe d, a portion of the lower end of said pipe being cut away, as at 61 to leave an opening (1, communicating with the enlarged part D. The enlarged portion D is open at top and communicates with a'duct or pipe (1, also formed integral with the trap, to which pipe (Z the connecting-pipe (l leading to the ejector, is connected. Around the trap is formed a chamber d, that has a screw-threaded opening, into which is screwed a chambered or hollow plug D which has an opening (1 in its vertical wall communicating with the atmosphere, and an opening (Z in its bottom immediately above the 1 sand-trap to admit a curient of air directly onto the sand therein. Over and in contact with the surface thereof the induced air-currents sweep and take up and carry away a portion. In the bottom of the trap and on a line with the axis of the pipe (1, that conducts the sand to the trap, is formed a dischargeopening closed by a plug (Z for the purpose of removing small stones or other heavy or bulky substances that may come in to the trap in any manner.

By means of the described construction of sand-trap the surface of the body of the sand at the opening (Z will lie about in the angle shown by the dotted line 1, and no amount of pressure exerted on the column of sand in pipe d can effect a change of this inclination, yet the vibrations of the locomotive will cause said surface to assume a horizontal position, as shown by dotted line 2, not quite level with the upper edge of the trap; but the sand will not rise above said partition, either under any pressure in the column of sand in pipe d or under any vibration of the locomotive, so that when the apparatus is not in operation all waste of sand wilLbe avoided, and when the apparatus is in operation the body of the sand will present a still or non-moving surface. The pipe (1 is connected with the ejector-casing B by a pipe (Z in such a manner that the axis thereof will lie at an angle to the axis of the ejector B and feed the sand in front of the ejector-nozzle 11 as shown.

Immediately below the nozzle Z2 an opening b is formed in the ejector-casing B to allow the sand left in the pipe or casing to pass out when the ejector is stopped-that is to say,

when the steam is shut off-and thus prevent the passage from being choked.

sand-blast is well known, and to protect the ejector-casing against such wear I connect therewith immediately in front of the ejectornozzle a discharge pipe or nozzle Z), so that said pipe may be readily removed when Worn and a new one attached at a trifling expense. The ejector B is connected with the steamcock by apipe a and a pipe a Said pipe a may, if desired, and as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, extend partly through the boiler to a point in proximity to the sanding apparatus, thence to the outside thereof, where it is connected with the pipe a or said pipes may be arranged wholly outside of the locomotive-boiler. The steam-cock A maybe connected directly with the steam-space of the boiler, or, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, by a pipe a with the steam-dome of the said locomotive-boiler.

The sanding apparatus is duplicated on opposite sides of the locomotive in front of the forward drive-wheels, and, if desired, a like apparatus may be applied in rearof said driveiwheels, if the locomotive is intended to run backward on more or less steep grades.

The steam-cock, Figs. 3 to 6, is constructed as 1 follows: A indicates the casing or barrel, provided with a flange a for attachment to the front of the boiler or fire-box thereof. The f casing has an axial conical passage, in which is seated a corresponding plug A, provided with an axial passage pfor steam, which, by turning the cone-plug, can be brought in communication with one or the other of the outlet-ports 19 13 Fig. 4, formed in the barrel or casing A, which is provided with branches 6 e for connecting the cock with the pipes a leading to the ej ectors. The plug A is further provided at each end, respectively, with a peripheral channel or groove 0 c half-way around the iv same, one groove or channel 0 at one end be- ;ing formed on one side of the plug, and the other c 'at the opposite end on the opposite iside of said plug, and said grooves are conneeted by longitudinal peripheral channels '0 0 formed on opposite sides ofthe plug and parallel to its axis, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5. When the plug is in a given position, one of the extremes of the partly-anjnular grooves lie opposite the openings or ports 0 0, Fig. 3, formed in the cock-casing, 1 said ports communicating with a passage j a and the latter with a branch a ,to'which is connected a drip -pipe a, Figs. 3 and 4. Any steam leaking from the lateral passage in the cone-plug or passage between the coneplug and its casing is intercepted by and enters the channels and grooves on the exterior of the plug and escapes to the drip-pipe a I as waste or condensed steam, and as the drippipe is placed where it is constantly kept warm said pipe cannot freeze up in cold The wear produced by the action of the r IIO Weather, the leakage being thus prevented from entering the connections between the cock and ejectors' or passing to the latter. The cone-plug A is kept in position by a nut or gland s, and itisheld steam-tight byagland or nut a, that screws into the gland or nut 8, its inner end abutting against a washer or ring A Figs. 3 and 6, that has two projections a, that fit into grooves formed in the inner peripheryof the glands. The ring or washerA prevents the rotation of the plug A when the gland a is unscrewed for any purpose. The plug a is operated by a handle or lever a projecting from an arm formed on a square or head a secured to the end of the stem to of the plug A. The handle or lever a is hollow or tubular and contains a pin a free to slide therein, said pin being forced outward by a spring at", whose ends abut, respectively, against a screw-plug a and the head of the pin a as shown in Fig. The cone end of the pin a is forced outward by the spring a against a cylindrical segment a formed on and projecting from the casing A of the cock, in. which segment is formed a stop-notch for the end of said pin when the cock is closed to shut off the steam from both ejectors, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4.

The described cock may be used for sup plying steam to each pair of ejectors in front and rear of the driving-wheels of the locomotive by moving the handle to one or the other side of the stop-notch in segment a. The steam may be supplied to the ejectors by one pipe for both sides of the locomotive and for one side of the driving-wheel, so that sand is simultaneously applied, say, in front of apair of driving-wheels by turning the cock one way, and by reversing the position of the cock steam will be simultaneously supplied to ejectors to apply sand in rear of a pair of driving Wheels. The current of air and volume of sand ejected are greatest when the steam is fully turned on, and they decrease in proportion to the volume of steam supplied to the ejectors, so that the volume of sand delivered to the rails or between the rails and tread of the drivers may be regulated.

From the above description the operation of my improved sanding apparatus for locomotives will be readily understood and need not be further described, except to say that as the level of the sand in the sand-trap cannot rise above the upper edge of said trap there is no waste of sand, also that the volume of sand delivered by or discharged from the delivery-nozzles l) is dependent 011 the volume of steam and the consequent volume and velocity of the air that is drawn in through the hollow screw-cap D, said air impinging on and taking up the sand from its surface in the trap. Consequently the volume of sand delivered to the ejectors is readily regulated, as above set forth.

I do not desire to claim, broadly, the forci-' ble delivery of sand through the medium of an ejector to the drivers of a locomotive or to the rails in front of said drivers or between the tread of the drivers and the rails, as such had been proposed previous to myinvention, as shown by Letters Patent granted in England to Frances Holt under date of July 18, 1885,No. 8,680; but the construction of apparatus therein shown has many serious defects. For instance, the pipes that deliver the sand to the ejectors are so arranged as to be liable to choke, there being quite a sharp angle or bend in said pipes, while a portion thereof is nearly horizontal. I have above stated that sand will not flow unless the angle of motion or flow is greater than thirty degrees, as experience has fully demonstrated, and, in fact, the angle of flow should not be much less than forty-five degrees. Nor is there any provision made for avoiding a waste of sand, the latter having access to the deliverypipes, choking them up, and no amount of steam supplied to the ejectors can dislodge it, and, in fact, the sand is liable to choke up the ejector itself, since the sand has to pass in and through the cavity on the exterior of the stean1-nozzle of such ejector. The conveying of the sand to the ejector by means of a current of air and the forcible delivery of such sand, as described, are of great importance, as it is well known that it bites into and roughens the metal upon which it impinges, thus giving an additional hold to the drivers on the rails, and by this means I believe coupled 'drivers may be in great measure dispensed with, thereby doing away with the danger and coupled drivers.

I also believe that I am the first to discover that the sand may be supplied to the ejector by causing a current of air to lift it and carry it to the ejector to be delivered by the jet of steam. The importance of this feature ofmy invention will be readily understood by locomotive-engineers.

Having now described my invention, what I claim is 1. The method, substantially herein described, of sanding railroad-rails, which consists in inducing an. air-current within a closure open to the outer air and over and in contact with the surface of a non-moving body of sand contained within said closure by means of the sucking action. of a steam-jet, and inducing the sand-laden current so produced into the path of the steam-jet by means of the same force.

2. The method herein described, which consists in utilizing the inducing force of a jet of steam as the means of causing a current of scribed, 0f sanding railroad-rails which con- In testimony whereof I affix my signature in sists in supplying the sand-blast by means of presence of two Witnesses.

a current of air induced by means of a jet of steam, and caused to impinge upon the surface of the sand and to take up by such impingement and carry a portion therefrom into the path of the said jet through a conduit having perpetual communication With the said sand surface and the said steam-jet.

JAMES GRESHAM.

\Vitnesses:

PETER J. LIVSEY, WILLIAM FAULKNER. 

